The Cutback Band: I Found Hugo

Hugo Ekitike scored both goals in Liverpool's 2-0 win over Brighton. Two of his five other chances may have pleased Arne Slot more though.

Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Brighton was a fantastic advert for the Premier League. Not so much in terms of the drama, perhaps, but it was an excellent example of the overall standard.

The Reds played pretty well. There were certainly none of the horrendous mistakes that have plagued the team, no doubt aided by the confidence and security that a first minute lead brings.

Yet Brighton amassed three big chances and almost two expected goals. The Seagulls finished eighth last season. They will likely be in that vicinity come May too. While not an elite side, they demonstrated the problems they can cause a Champions League team on their own patch. It all made for a very watchable match.

The performance of Curtis Jones was rightly praised. The influence of Florian Wirtz continued to grow too, with this another fine afternoon for the German. It was Hugo Ekitike who left the biggest impression, not just in terms of his two goals.

He delivered the sort of intensity, movement and hard running that we simply have not seen Alexander Isak provide, setting a new PB for high intensity sprints in a Premier League game in the process. The way in which the Reds can play is being at least partly determined by which of their big money summer strikers is front and centre.

There were two chances for Ekitike on Saturday which carried greater interest than those which were converted. He had taken three shots by the 20th minute, a total no player on either side topped by full time. After profiting from a headed pass to score, the Frenchman’s next two chances came via cutback crosses. These are one of Arne Slot’s “four very effective ways to score”.

“A cutback cross that arrives has a much greater chance of a goal than an attempt at goal from a high cross. A player can run into a pulled ball and use the speed of the pass to shoot. An opportunity from a returned cross relatively often leads to a goal, provided the ball is passed over the ground without bounce.”

ARNE SLOT, 2017

The similarities between the final execution notwithstanding, the build-ups to the two chances against Brighton were very different. They’re worth reviewing, particularly as we haven’t seen Slot’s Liverpool produce this sort of opening too often.